Thomas Jefferson got it right when he said: “The government closest to the people serves the people best.”

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But there are some who believe wisdom resides in the capitol cities, that those serving in Denver and D.C. have the answers for problems impacting all of Colorado, including our small towns.

That isn’t the Colorado way. Most voters know that, far from having all the answers, those in Denver and the Beltway are far more likely to cause a problem than solve one. Coloradans trust their local communities and governments to understand their needs better than someone living on the other side of the state. What works in Boulder doesn’t work in Alamosa.

This right of self-governance goes to the heart of Amendment 77, which gives residents in Cripple Creek, Central City and Black Hawk the right to make basic decisions impacting their local economies and financial future. Specifically, the amendment gives these three mountain communities the option to hold a local election and decide if residents want to add new casino games and raise bet limits.

When Colorado legalized gaming in these historic towns 30 years ago, they were on the verge of becoming ghost towns. But they successfully transformed into resort destinations centered on gaming, built hotels and opened retail shops and restaurants. Tourism and gaming revenue now make up the bulk of these towns’ tax revenue.

But now they are fighting for survival. The coronavirus has devastated their towns. Colorado’s once-thriving tourism and hospitality industry has been severely impacted by COVID-19 and faces a multi-year recovery. Shutdowns, furloughs and reduced capacities have ravaged these three towns, and their businesses, governments and communities are gasping for air. Cripple Creek’s finance director recently announced the town’s dire circumstances: After already cutting its budget 30 percent, projections indicate the town will suffer more than a 40 percent loss in gaming tax revenue.

Giving Cripple Creek and the other towns the option of adding games and raising limits could be the life preserver they need. It would increase tax revenue and improve local economic opportunities, boost travel and tourism jobs and generate more money for restaurants, hotels and casinos.

On the other hand, it may not be what they want to do. The point is that it should be up to the residents to decide, not a Denver resident who is morally opposed to gaming or a Boulder voter who doesn’t like sin taxes. The people of Cripple Creek, Central City and Black Hawk are the ones vested in the community, and they are the ones impacted by any changes. They should decide.

This amendment not only helps these local communities, it also designates additional tax revenue to community colleges, which are currently struggling from cuts in state funding and loss in tuition revenue due to COVID-19. The money goes to retaining students and increasing graduation rates, which Pikes Peak Community College President Lance Bolton has said is “desperately needed” to help the often lower-income and older students attending community colleges. This desperate need is one of the reasons Amendment 77 was endorsed by the Colorado Community College System (CCCS), which represents 37,000 students at 13 colleges and 39 locations across Colorado.

Alexander Hamilton said that a person is more attached to his family than his neighborhood, to his neighborhood than the community, to his community than the city, and so on. That is one of the many reasons we don’t have centralized federal or state power in this country. That is why political autonomy and local authority are often reserved for city and town governments. It is why states should not preempt cities and towns from determining what is economically best for their residents.

It is because the government closest to the people serves the people best.

Please vote yes on Amendment 77.

Bill Cadman is a Republican former president of the Colorado Senate.